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Promodel Job Process Example

A chemical company produces an industrial compound. The compound is sold in


packages of 6 containers and two applicators. The compound is manufactured from a
raw material base. Ten barrels of the raw material base arrive every morning.
The raw material base is processed through a Separator. The processing time for
the separator process follows log normal distribution with a mean of 45 minutes
and a standard deviation of 10 minutes. At the end of the process ten gallons of
the compound is produced from each barrel. The compound is stored in a special
container of capacity 100 gallons.

The next step in the process is filling the compound in a 1 gallon container.
Empty containers arrive in batches of 100 every morning. The empty containers are
stored in a bin that can hold 100 containers. The time required for the process
of filling one container with the one gallon of the compound follows uniform
distribution between 2.7 and 3.3 minutes. The filled containers are stored in an
area with a capacity of 100 containers. The filling machine is prone to break-
down. The time between failures follows exponential distribution with a mean of
200 hours. The time required to repair the machine follows normal distribution
with a mean of 5 hours and standard deviation of 1 hour.

Then, six containers are packaged into a single box with two applicators. The
processing time for the packaging operation follows a triangular distribution with
lower limit of 2 minutes, upper limit of 5 minutes and most likely value of 3
minutes. Applicators are purchased from a vendor in batches of 500 units every
three weeks.

Develop a Promodel simulation model for the production process. Run the
simulation for 15 weeks with warm-up of 60 hours. Analyze the process and
determine how production throughout may be increased. Assume 40 hours per week.

Overview of simulation model


Entities Raw_base, Compound, Empty container, Full container,
Applicator, Six-pack box
Arrivals Raw-base, empty containers, applicator
Locations Storage for raw-base, compound, empty & filled containers and
applicators, Separator, filling machine, and box packager
Performance production throughput, bottle-neck operation
measures
Arrival
Entity = Raw_Base
Frequency = 8 hr, Qty = 10 First 10
Raw_Base_ Storage Separator
First 1 Units = 1, Cap. = 1 Compound_Storage
Capacity = 10
Service time: L(45,10) min Capacity = 100
First 1
Arrival
Entity = E_Container Join 1 Filing machine
E_Container_Storage Units = 1, Cap. = 1
Frequency = 8 hr, Qty = 100 Capacity = 100 Service time: U(3,.3) min
DT = e(200) hr

First 1
Join 1 Box_Packager
Applicator_Storage First 1 F_Container_Storage
Units = 1, Cap. = 6
Capacity = 500 Service time: T(2,3,5) min Capacity = 100
Arrival
Entity = Applicator
Combine 6
Frequency = 120 hr, Qty = 500
Join 2 Applicator
Exit
Promodel Layout

*************************************************************************
* Locations *
*************************************************************************
Name Cap Units Stats Rules Cost
------------------------ --- ----- ----------- ---------- ------------
Raw_Base_storage 10 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Separator 1 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Compound_Storage 100 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Filling_Machine 1 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
E_Container_storage 100 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
F_Container_storage 100 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Box_Packager 6 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Applicator_Storage 500 1 Time Series Oldest, ,

*************************************************************************
* Clock downtimes for Locations *
*************************************************************************
Loc Frequency First Time Priority Scheduled Disable Logic
----------------- ------------ ------------ ------------ --------- ------- -----------
Filling_machine e(200) hr 99 No No Wait N(5,1) hr

********************************************************************************
* Entities *
********************************************************************************
Name Speed (fpm) Stats Cost
---------------- ------------ ----------- ------------
Raw_Base 150 Time Series
Compound 150 Time Series
F_Container 150 Time Series
Six_Pack_Box 150 Time Series
E_Container 150 Time Series
Applicator 150 Time Series
********************************************************************************
* Processing *
********************************************************************************
Process Routing
Entity Location Operation Blk Output Destination Rule
----------- -------------------- ------------------ ---- ----------- -------------------- ------
Raw_Base Raw_Base_storage 1 Raw_Base Separator FIRST 1
Raw_Base Separator Wait L(45, 10) min 1 Compound Compound_Storage FIRST 10
Compound Compound_Storage 1 Compound Filling_Machine JOIN 1
E_Container E_Container_storage 1 E_Container Filling_Machine FIRST 1
E_Container Filling_Machine Join 1 Compound
Wait U(3,.3) min 1 F_Container F_Container_storage FIRST 1
F_Container F_Container_storage 1 F_Container Box_Packager FIRST 1
Applicator Applicator_Storage 1 Applicator Box_Packager JOIN 1
F_Container Box_Packager Combine 6
Join 2 Applicator
WAIT T(2, 3, 5) MIN 1 Six_Pack_Box EXIT FIRST 1

********************************************************************************
* Arrivals *
********************************************************************************
Entity Location Qty Each First Time Occurrences Frequency Logic
---------- ------------------ ---------- ---------- ----------- ---------- ------------
Raw_Base Raw_Base_storage 10 INF 8 hr
E_Container E_Container_storage 100 0 INF 8 hr
Applicator Applicator_Storage 500 0 INF 120 hr

Results: Locations
Total Avg Time Per Avg Maximum Current %
Name Capacity Entries Entry (MIN) Contents Contents Contents Utilization
Raw Base storage 10 751.4 206.3 4.3 10.0 4.3 43.1
E Container storage 100 7481.0 154.7 32.2 100.0 13.8 32.2
Applicator Storage 500 2729.4 3293.8 249.7 500.0 240.4 49.9
Separator 1 748.1 45.0 0.9 1.0 1.0 93.6
Compound Storage 100 7474.2 90.3 18.7 82.8 7.0 18.7
Filling Machine 1 7468.2 3.2 0.7 1.0 0.7 66.8
F Container storage 100 7467.8 0.2 0.0 2.0 0.0 0.0
Box Packager 6 7471.9 14.5 3.0 6.0 2.5 50.2

Results: Location States Multi


Name Scheduled Time (HR) % Empty % Part Occupied % Full % Down
Raw Base storage 600 14.9 84.3 0.9 0
E Container storage 600 32.8 66.1 1.1 0
Applicator Storage 600 1.1 98.6 0.2 0
Compound Storage 600 27.5 72.1 0.3 0
F Container storage 600 95.9 4.1 0.0 0
Box Packager 600 13.7 74.8 11.5 0

Results: Location States Single


Scheduled % % %
Name Time (HR) Operation % Setup % Idle Waiting Blocked % Down
Separator 600 93.3 0.0 6.4 0.0 0.3 0.0
Filling Machine 600 41.5 0.0 30.5 25.4 0.0 2.7

Results: Failed Arrivals


Entity Name Location Name Total Failed
Raw Base Raw Base storage 2.6
E Container E Container storage 62.7
Applicator Applicator Storage 56.2

Results: Entity activity


Current Avg Time In Avg Time In Avg Time Avg Time In Avg Time
Total Qty In System Move Logic Waiting Operation Blocked
Name Exits System (MIN) (MIN) (MIN) (MIN) (MIN)
Raw Base 0.0 5.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
E Container 0.0 14.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Applicator 2489.0 240.4 3677.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 3677.3
Compound 7467.2 7.0 342.8 0.0 0.0 44.9 297.8
F Container 7467.0 2.5 170.6 0.0 12.4 2.0 156.2
Six Pack Box 1244.9 0.0 3.3 0.0 0.0 3.3 0.0

Summary of results
Inventory
Name Avg Contents How many six-packs
Raw Base storage 4.3 4.3 x 10/6 = 7.16 boxes Throughput = 1244.9 boxes
E Container storage 32.2 32.2/6 = 5.4 boxes
Applicator Storage 249.7 249.7/2 = 124.8 boxes
Compound Storage 18.7 18.7/6 = 3.1 boxes
F Container storage 0.0 0

Machine utilization
Name % Operation
Separator 93.3
Filling Machine 41.5
Box Packager % Full = 11.5%

Arrival Actual in
Entity = Raw_Base Actual in
=7474.2
Frequency = 8 hr, Qty = 10 =748.1
Capacity = 600/8 x 10 = 750 First 10
Separator
Actual =751.4 Units = 1, Cap. = 1 Compound_Storage
Raw_Base_ Storage First 1 Service time: L(45,10) min Capacity = 100
Capacity = 10 Capacity = 600/.75 = 800
Join 1 Actual =7467
Arrival
Entity = E_Container Filing machine
E_Container_Storage Units = 1, Cap. = 1
Frequency = 8 hr, Qty = 100 Capacity = 100
Capacity = 600/8 x 100 = 7500 First 1 Service time: U(3,.3) min
DT = e(200) hr
Actual in =7481 Actual in Capacity = 600 x 60/3 = 12,000
=7468.2
Actual in =2729.4 First 1
Box_Packager
Applicator_Storage Join 1 Units = 1, Cap. = 6 First 1 F_Container_Storage
Capacity = 500
Service time: T(2,3,5) min Capacity = 100
Capacity = 600 x 60/3 = 12,000
Actual in
Arrival =2489 Actual in =7471.9
Entity = Applicator
Frequency = 120 hr, Qty = 500 Exit
Capacity = 600/120 x 500 = 2500 Combine 6
Actual out = 1245
Join 2 Applicator
Flowchart analysis
Analysis for increasing the production rate to 1500

Bottleneck computation
Arrival of materials
Entity Name Arrival parameter Capacity for 600 hours Capacity in 6 packs
Raw Base 10 barrels/8hour (600 hours/8 hours) x 10 = 750 barrels (750 br. x 10 gallons)/6 = 1250 boxes
E Container 100 per 8 hour (600 hours/8 hours) x 100 = 7500 units 7500/6 = 1250
Applicator 500 per 120 hours (600 hours/120 hours) x 500 = 2500 units 2500/2 = 1250

Machine capacities
Name Production rate Capacity for 600 hours Capacity in 6 packs
Separator 10 gallons/45 minutes (600/.75 ) x 10 = 8000 gallons 8000/6 = 1333.33 boxes
Filling Machine 1 gallon/3 minutes (600 hr. x 60 min)/3 = 12,000 12,000/6 = 2,000 boxes
Box Packager 1 box/3 minutes (600 hr. x 60 min)/3 = 12,000 12,000 boxes

Summary
At the current production rate, arrivals of all the three materials are at bottle neck. The capacity of the
Actual in =7467.8
production process is limited by the Separator to 1,333 boxes.

Possible changes needed for increasing throughput to 1500 boxes


Arrivals
Requirement for 1500 No. of batches/15 Deficit/batch
Current capacity Deficit
Entity Name boxes weeks (Qty each)
Raw Base 1500 x 6 gallons/box = (600 hours/8 hours) x 10 150 bbl. 15 weeks x 40 150/75 = 2
9000 gallons/10 gallons = 750 barrels hrs./8 hrs. = 75 bbl.
per bbl. = 900 bbl.
E Container 1500 x 6 containers/box = (600 hours/8 hours) x 1500 units 15 weeks x 40 1500/75 =
9000 containers 100 = 7500 units hrs./8 hrs. = 75 20 units
Applicator 1500 x 2 = 3000 units (600 hours/120 hours) x 450 units 15 weeks x 40 450/5 = 90
500 = 2500 units hrs./120 hrs. = 5 units

Machine capacities
Name Requirement for 1500 boxes Capacity for 600 hours Action needed
Separator 1500 boxes x 6 gallons/10 (600/.75 ) x 10 = 8000 Need to run 100 more batches
gallons per batch = 900 gallons or 800 batches Time per batch = 600x60/900 = 40
batches or 9000 gallons minutes/batch
Filling Machine 1500 boxes x 6 containers = (600 hr. x 60 min)/3 = 12,000 No action needed
9000 containers containers
Box Packager 1500 boxes (600 hr. x 60 min)/3 = 12,000 No action needed
boxes
Promodel - Line production

Green Grass, Inc. a manufacturer of garden equipment wants to design an


assembly line for the production of fertilizer spreader to meet demand
estimated to be about 2400 units per week (40 hours/week). Information about
the production process is given in the following table.

Mean Assume Uniform


Work time distribution for time
element Description (sec) (sec) Predecessors
A Bolt leg frame to hopper 40 36 - 44 None
B Insert impeller shaft 30 25 - 35 A
C Attach axle 50 44 - 56 A
D Attach agitator 40 32 - 48 B
E Attach drive wheel 6 4 - 8 B
F Attach free wheel 25 21 - 29 C
G Mount lower post 15 11 - 19 C
H Attach controls 20 17 - 23 D, E
I Mount nameplate 18 14 - 22 F, G

The theoretical assembly line to produce at the rate of 2400 units per week, given
in page 324 is reproduced below.

Station Work elements Cumulative time (Sec) Idle time (sec)


S1 A 40 20
S2 C 50 10
S3 B, F 55 5
S4 D, G 55 5
S5 E, H, I 44 16

Develop a ProModel simulation for the above production line. Run the simulation
for 1-week of operation (40 hours). Let the warm-up period be equal to 10 hours.
Repeat simulation 10 times.

Overview of simulation model


Entity Parts
Arrival Parts
Locations Parts storage, 5 stations
Performance measures Idle time at work stations, WIP level, production throughput

Arrival
Entity = Parts
Frequency = 8 hr, Qty = 300
Station 1 Station 2
Parts Storage First 1
Units = 1, Cap. = 1 Units = 1, Cap. = 1
Capacity = Inf
Service time: U(40,4) sec Service time: U(50,6) sec

Exit Station 5 Station 4 Station 3


Units = 1, Cap. = 1 Units = 1, Cap. = 1 Units = 1, Cap. = 1
Service time: U(6,2) sec; Service time: U(40,8) sec; Service time: U(30,5) sec;
U(20,3) sec; U(18,4) sec U(15,4) sec U(25,4) sec
********************************************************************************
* Locations *
********************************************************************************
Name Cap Units Stats Rules Cost
---------------------- --- ----- ----------- ---------- ------------
Station1 1 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Station2 1 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Station3 1 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Station4 1 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Station5 1 1 Time Series Oldest, ,
Parts_Storage INF 1 Time Series Oldest, ,

********************************************************************************
* Entities *
********************************************************************************
Name Speed (fpm) Stats Cost
------------- ------------ ----------- ------------
Parts 150 Time Series

********************************************************************************
* Processing *
********************************************************************************
Process Routing
Entity Location Operation Blk Output Destination
------------- ---------------------- ------------------ ---- ------------- ----------
Parts Parts_Storage Inc WIP 1 Parts Station1
Parts Station1 Wait U(40,4) Sec 1 Parts Station2
Parts Station2 Wait U(50,6) Sec 1 Parts Station3
Parts Station3 Wait U(30,5) Sec
Wait U(25,4) Sec 1 Parts Station4
Parts Station4 Wait U(40,8) Sec
Wait U(15,4) Sec
1 Parts Station5
Parts Station5 Wait U(6,2) Sec
Wait U(20,3) Sec
Wait U(18,4) sec
DEC WIP 1 Parts Exit
********************************************************************************
* Arrivals *
********************************************************************************
Entity Location Qty Each First Time Occurrences Frequency Logic
--------- ---------------------- ---------- ---------- ----------- ---------- --------
Parts Parts_Storage 300 0 INF 8 hr

********************************************************************************
* Variables (global) *
********************************************************************************
ID Type Initial value Stats
------------- ------------ ------------- -----------
WIP Integer 0 Time Series

Locations
Avg Time
Total Per Entry Avg Maximum Current %
Name Capacity Entries (MIN) Contents Contents Contents Utilization
Station1 1 2498.8 0.96 1 1 1 100
Station2 1 2498.8 0.96 1 1 1 100
Station3 1 2498.8 0.96 1.00 1 1 99.76
Station4 1 2498.8 0.92 0.95 1 1 95.37
Station5 1 2498.7 0.73 0.76 1 0.8 76.34
Parts Storage 999999 3273.9 384.80 524.91 901.2 776.1 0.05

Location States

Name % Operation % Setup % Idle % Waiting % Blocked % Down


Station1 69.3 0 0 0 30.7 0
Station2 86.7 0 0 0 13.3 0
Station3 95.4 0 0.2 0 4.4 0
Station4 95.3 0 4.6 0 0.1 0
Station5 76.3 0 23.7 0 0 0

Entity Activity
Name Total Exits
Parts 2497.9

Variables
Avg Time
Total Per Change Minimum Maximum Current Avg
Name Changes (MIN) Value Value Value Value
WIP 5497.9 0.44 154.1 905.9 780.9 529.6

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